That Try and The Final Challenge; 50 years today...

Losty Dublin

https://youtu.be/x1YV5xMWlK8

It was a different world back then. And like the world, rugby was different too.

The game was played by teams of gentlemen, gentlemen who didn't get paid for it, who didn't go to the guy, gentlemen who drank and smoked and ate; some of whom did these mid game. There was no H Cup or World Cup or URC, the true pride was in playing the sport that you liked and having a good time. I guess you could say it was played with a Corinthian Spirit.

However there was one constant that remains today; namely that the team to beat was New Zealand, the dreaded All Blacks. And so it was that the Five Nations duly took their turns, with the tourists taking the National scalps bar a draw an Ireland team who were denied a Grand Slam by way of political tensions.

And so was that at the end of January there was but one team who stood in the way of New Zealand; Barbarian RFC. The stage was the Cardiff Arms Park,stadium an ideal home for a new, free flowing rugby.

Labelled at the time as The Final Challenge per tour traditions; today the match referred to by many as "That Game. And with the best of the best lining out for the Baa Baa's, magic was bound to happen.

And by God it did.....

stephen_n

A very different game. High tackles were quite legal by the looks of that or were NZ cheating even back then.

leakyboots

Have that on VHS at home somewhere, what a game

Narcissus

Classic, that conversion leaves a lot to be desired though 😅

Dave_The_Sheep

Wasn't it the 27th January?

Digifriendly

Don't forget that NZ had lost to West Midlands, NW England Division and Llanelli before losing to Barbarians although the latter was their only Saturday defeat on the British Isles leg of the tour. They lost to France a couple of weeks later.